(Geneva) Their “GTI”, “Turbo” and “Sport” ranges have started to disappear under the effect of anti-pollution standards. Now that they have electrified their everyday cars, the major car manufacturers are starting to present their electric sports cars.
A few models are thus showing the end of their aggressive grille among the hundreds of electric SUVs and sedans arriving on the market.
Tesla boss Elon Musk announced Wednesday on his social network car “.
At the Geneva Motor Show, the Chinese group MG presented the Cyberster, the first mass-produced electric convertible on the market.
With its futuristic lines and butterfly doors, it promises dazzling acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.2 seconds.
Neither its price nor its weight have been communicated, but with its large 72 kWh batteries, it has a range of more than 400 kilometers.
On the MG stand, in front of the convertible, Marco Pratelli was won over. “Electricity makes sense for this type of passenger car, much more than for travel,” explains this 61-year-old Italian motorist, who is in his 42nd year.e car, a big Land Rover.
VW, Alpine, MG
PHOTO CYRIL ZINGARO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
At the Geneva Motor Show, the Chinese group MG presented the Cyberster, the first mass-produced electric convertible on the market. With its futuristic lines and butterfly doors, it promises dazzling acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.2 seconds.
Several manufacturers of exclusive cars have already made their electric shift, creating the powerful Lotus Evija, Rimac Nevera or Pininfarina Battista.
The electric pioneer Tesla historically launched with a roadster, sticking batteries and an electric motor on the chassis of the Lotus Elise, a small sports car renowned for its lightness.
The power of the electric motors, immediately available under the accelerator, must compensate for the weight of the batteries.
The year 2024 marks the arrival of generalists in this enthusiast market, for whom ecological concerns may be secondary.
The Chinese giant SAIC, which bought MG, is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the British brand this year. And he intends to play on his sporting past.
In addition to its convertible planned for the end of 2024, the manufacturer already offers an “X-Power” version of its MG4. With its 435 horsepower, it attracted 10% of its buyers in France, notably “young people who were buying their first new car after driving a Volkswagen Golf GTI”, according to Julien Marion, director of MG France.
Volkswagen, in fact, plans to launch a GTI version of its small electric ID.2 in 2026. In the meantime, the manufacturer sold 45,000 copies of its Cupra Born last year, a sporty version of its compact ID.3.
Several of its models will also be available in “GTX” versions, including its ID van. Buzz.
Renault, which presented its electric Renault 5 in Geneva, must also soon present its first electric Alpine. Stellantis has launched a sporty version of its small Fiat 500, the Abarth 500e.
The Korean Hyundai will also deliver its first Ioniq 5 in the spring with its sporty “N” badge.
“We feel a lot of enthusiasm,” commented a spokesperson for the brand in France. This model must, according to him, “reconcile thermal and electric” by reproducing sound and gear changes, in particular.
“Niche segment”
PHOTO CYRIL ZINGARO, ASSOCIATED PRESS
The sedan from the Chinese brand BYD, the Seal, already makes 313 horsepower in the base version and 530 on the top version.
“I doubt the potential of these small sports cars,” said Felipe Muñoz of Jato Dynamics. “It’s already a niche segment in the gasoline version, and they will be very expensive in the electric version. »
Electric cars are already sporty in general, underlines the spokesperson for the Chinese group BYD in France, Jean-Briac Dalibard. The Chinese brand’s sedan, the Seal, already makes 313 horsepower in the base version and 530 in the top version, for 50,000 euros.
“No model in the range makes less than 204 horsepower, which is the equivalent of the old GTIs,” said Mr. Dalibard.
BYD, which is competing with Tesla for the No. 1 electric position in the world, on the other hand offers on its domestic market a luxury electric sports car with more than 1,000 horsepower and two tons, the Yangwang U9.
In front of the Cyberster convertible, Olga Saison, 55, is doubtful. “I love driving,” says this owner of an electric Audi, resident of Belfort, in France. “But I like to hear the “vroom” of the engine. Maybe it’s because I’ve been driving diesels for 30 years…”